Timing: Ramadan 29th-Shawal 10th
Weather: Normal- not so hot
Crowd: Similar to Hajj during Ramadan but it got better in later Shawwal. But you are going to a place which is meant to be crowded. So be prepared and you will be happy inshaAllah.
People: Performed with Two Kids ; toddler girl and an infant boy
Author: Lives in America, thus has an American tone and terminology.
o First Floor= Ground floor, Second floor =Ground plus 1
o Stroller=PRAM
o Restroom=Bathroom
o Formula= Baby milk
Umrah is all about the plan. Beautiful planning will lead you to a beautiful experience be iznillah.
First of all, Congratulations that you decided to plan your Umrah! And not just by yourself, with your family. When you have kids, a lot of people suggest that don’t take kids, it will be hard. But always remember, Hard work and efforts in the path of Allah is Rewarding. And basically, you will get the BUY ONE GET ONE FREE type reward. By taking your kids with you, you will avoid the “I wish they were here” feelings and also You will make memories of a lifetime. SO BISMILLAH 😊
In this post, you will see some perspectives, short & sweet.
Process: If you are flying from US/Canada:
o Book your airline Ticket,
o Take your E-VISA (we took visitors). They close Umrah from a month before the hajj to a month after hajj. Check on Harmain shariefen FB page.
o Download Nusuk App and secure your permits for Umrah and Praying in Rawdah.
Up your Game before you go:
o Walks on marble floors are different from walking on a track with your comfortable shoes. But your walking on Tracks will build your stamina and you will enjoy there more inshallah. So Start walking and raise it up to 3 miles a day or more. It helps!
o Add extra ibadah /Azkaar in your daily routine at least a week before so that you are ready spiritually and ENJOY there more. Your Body will surprise you how much it can do it for your Soul. You will be surprised with your own self inshaAllah.
o You are the Guest of The RAHMAN so enjoy every moment.
Umrah with a toddler:
o You need to build excitement BEFORE you go. That means, watch Makkah LIVE & MADINAH LIVE at least a few weeks before every day. And tell them where will you go. That makes life so easy over there coz they are as excited as you are. Or at least they know where they are. Our daughter would call KABA “KAABA “or sometimes “MAKKAH KAABA”, Masjid Nabawi green masjid, or “MASJID e ABAWI”. But she was very excited and happy when she really saw it with her own eyes. Kids surprise you there. They are very focused and of course, every kid is different but they have their own ways to surprise you.
Umrah with an infant
o You can take a baby carrier and keep them in there as long as your back can handle. You might have to take breaks here and there.
o We took a carrier for Masjid-al-haram coz strollers are not allowed in Mataaf
o You should get the closest possible hotel in Makkah so that you can exert in Ibaadah more even though getting to masjid al haram would inshaAllah be counted as ibadah with the right intention. But get something close to the clock tower area, that will make it easier just in case the formula is finished or your baby needs a diaper change and you don’t want to carry things with you. And also, if you are getting late for your prayer and Adhan is started, you can still catch your prayer in haram easily if you are close.
Umrah with two kids:
o A double stroller is bliss. We prayed our salah easily inside Masjid al haram with it. They let you take that in. In Masjid e Nabawi, there were restrictions to entering woman’s side with kids. You can pray in the courtyard area with the kids. We have another tip coming up for how to take inside later here.
Look for a full list of items you may need for your trip here: https://www.muslimtravellog.com/post/things-to-pack-when-traveling-with-a-toddler-infant
Umrah with a baby boy:
o The main thing you have to keep in mind is; IF YOU ARE MAKING THE NIYAH FOR THEM THEN, keeping them in ihram is little challenging especially if they crawl and active dudes. BOYs follow all the same rulings for IHRAM(two white towels which are not sewn). We had to ask the diaper question to AMJA (American MUSLIM JURIST ASSOCIATION) whether will we have to pay DAMM/FIDYA/expiation for using diapers because it’s all over the internet that you have to. But they said No you don’t because of necessity, and it may cause more harm if babies don’t wear diapers- Allah-o-Alam. By the way, this was the only different item for boys coz girls can wear the whole thing since woman’s ihram is simpler. Please do what you follow in terms of Fiqh.
Umrah with a girl
o A simple Hijab/Abaya with comfortable clothes inside would work like a charm
Tawaf:
o Take your baby carrier for the infant if you plan to be in Mataaf. Your toddler might walk or you might have to carry the carrier. If you have kids bigger then this is not applicable. The best time to do Tawaaf in general in the mataaf area is past midnight-1230AM to 230AM.
o If you are planning to do tawaf on the second floor , enter from King Fahad Gate you will see Kaaba right there. You can make your dua, proceed to the green light and start. In this case, a double stroller would be bliss again. We did tawaf with and without a stroller both on the second floor and in mataaf( no stroller there) there and the energy level and duaas concentration would be so different. Kids generally get overstimulated seeing crowds and activities. So you might have to keep them entertained and calm too. We will have one more tip upcoming later for YOU only later in this post.
o Tawaf on the 3rd floor is crowded because all the people without ihram are doing Tawaf there. And people can push you especially if it’s crowded.
o Roof Tawaf: It's less crowded. But do it if you really have to when it’s a cooler part of the day.
Saee:
o When we went for hajj, Our Sheikh suggested that always go to the 2nd and 3rd floors. We would suggest Please do it. Coz First Floor is so crowded that you won’t be able to focus on your duas or you might be able to. But We couldn’t. especially when you turn from the mountain Safa to Marwa. So it’s best to go out, and then take the escalators and go to the 2nd floor. By the way, there are no elevators there so you have to take your stroller through the escalator. We will add another tip for that later here in this post.
o Again double stroller would help here a lot as well. No restrictions.
o They added the scooters you can take on the 4th floor. So, if your kids get tired or you have a situation, please feel free to take advantage of that.
Masjid al Haram with Kids:
o You can take a stroller inside except for Mataaf.
Masjid e Nabawi with Kids:
o Sisters can’t take the stroller or kids inside. But brothers Can. The man of our family would take our daughter or son or both and just enter and don’t look at anyone without any problems.
o Sister can do ziarat with Kids after Fajr. Our daughter was doing the ziarat every day. It was an amazing experience. This is just to Say Salaam to Rasool Allah SAW and they don’t allow you to pray nawafil at that time. For that, you have to take an appointment within NUSUK or Tawakkalna App.
Site Seeing with Kids:
o If this is YOUR first Umrah then you would like to add the ziyarats of all the places. Just Plan after Fajr time or time when your kids are most awake.
o In Makkah, you will have to book Taxi for sightseeing and you can make your itinerary
o In Madinah, you can take Taxi or you can take CITY BIG BUS TOUR. We took the bus tour and Enjoyed a lot because kids were so happy on the upper floor of the bus.
Pro-tip:
Uhud: Listen to “The First” series, especially of the Sahaba’s who were shuhada e uhud. You will be able to have your connection by just thinking about their stories and reminding yourself of them. Hamza RA, Musab ibn Umair RA, Abdullah bin Jahash RA and more. Even Nusaiba RA who became a participant in Uhud.
Quba: Praying 2 Nafil in quba equals to Umrah. It’s an easy Umrah for sure 😊
Train ride between Makkah & Madinah with kids:
o If you have kids, you will have stuff for them so you might not be traveling lightly. We would suggest a Taxi because it will reduce your loading and unloading of your luggage from the taxi. Because you will have to load it at the hotel in a taxi then unload it at the train station, then load it on the train, then unload it at your destination( Makkah or Madinah), and then load it again in Taxi. And then again unload it at the hotel. You will find some help here and there but that’s tiring.
o We have heard that some people would send their stuff by Taxi and then take the train for experience as well. You have to be there 2 hours before your train time so you might not be saving any time. But you can enjoy the ride.
Flights with kids:
o If possible and cheaper, of course, Make 2 itineraries. One for going One for coming.
If you plan to do Umrah first ( that’s what we did). Fly to Jeddah. It’s one-hour Taxi ride to Haram or Clock Tower Hotels. And then come back from Madinah Airport. Much easier for kids.
Umrah in Ramadan with Kids:
o It’s crowded so do Tawaf on the second floor (Mataf+1) even though it’s longer but It’s safer until or unless you are doing it when it’s least crowded.
Tips/ gratuities:
o Tip the people in the hotel, tip the people who help you. Tip as much as you can. Most workers there are by themselves sending money to their home countries living far away from their families. And it’s not easy. Help them as much as you can.
Take Turns/SOLO Times:
o It’s very important to decide with your partner what time you and him/her can go to the Haram and do tawaf and ibadah of their own. The best time to go in our opinion is past midnight. But also, after 8 AM there is a very less crowd in Mataaf. In masjid e Nabawi, you can plan anytime for your own ibadah and find a good spot inshaAllah. The heart gets its fill of Emaan in Madinah so take in as much as you can.
Janazah Prayers at harmain:
o Learn before you go there. You will be praying Janazah almost after every prayer. It’s a reminder for all of us What really matters and what is important. Mostly there are multiple janazas so we memorized Dua in plural form. Mishary Rashid’s Ramadan night duas have it also. Memorize and internalize the meaning and pray with all your heart inshaAllah.
Escalator & Strollers:
o Ok, so sometimes my partner will be there on the escalator and sometimes not. But other people will help you inshallah get in and out of the escalator. When going down, one person has to hold the handle and the other will have to hold it straight which means two front wheels will be in the air. When going up, lift the front wheel up so that it can get onto one stair and the second can follow. Hold on to it the whole time. It sounds difficult but it’s not after you do it one time. Coz you will not find an elevator or flat escalator there. But we got so used to it that this was not the problem at all.
Laundry:
We don’t know if it was timing or location, but we found getting your laundry done is expensive. Therefore, we took enough clothes, so we didn’t have to do it at all. Only wash some shirts here and there and leave them to dry in a hangar in the restroom. People take disposable clothing as well. It’s all about how you are budgeting your trip.
Dubai/Doha/Turkey layover:
o We went from Dubai and came back from Doha. We took the hotel on the way back because it was a 15-hour layover. Doha is a beautiful place to visit and so is Dubai. So If you can, add 2 days and just rest and enjoy the sightseeing and food there.
We hope this information will be useful in making your plans.
Disclaimer: This post is not a How to do Umrah. It's an experience post that can help the audience to improve their own trip. The author is not responsible for anything.
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